


What might tomorrow bring?

by sadyshea



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Thorne & Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Time Travel, M/M, Quidditch, Sexual Confusion, Time Turner
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-09
Updated: 2016-08-22
Packaged: 2018-08-07 18:16:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7724782
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sadyshea/pseuds/sadyshea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A re-imagining of Scorpius and Albus's return to the present after the first time they use the TimeTurner. They find themselves sorted into different houses, on opposing Quidditch teams and they're... together? The two best friends must navigate their new reality, confusing feelings and more without knowing just what tomorrow might bring.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"Do you think it worked?" Albus whispers anxiously.

Scorpius looks all around. Everything about their surroundings looks exactly the same and yet, he senses that something is very, very different.

A chill shudders up Scorpius' spine. A twig snaps a few hundreds yards ahead of them, followed by some booming crunches. He slowly swallows and takes out his wand defensively. He holds one hand onto Albus's chest to keep him back as he investigates the intruder. Even though he can't see it, he can imagine the smirk of amusement that this must have inspired on Albus's lips. 

"What do you think it is?" Albus questions, slowly pulling out his own wand. 

Scorpius walks tentatively a few feet further toward the sound but the intruder quickly bursts through the trees. Albus winces and Scorpius staggers back in surprise.

"What are you boys doing out in the middle of the night without any supervision?"

Hagrid.

The giant Keeper of the Keys scowls accusingly down at Scorpius and Albus. The two best friends let out a mutual sigh of relief.

"Well, come on, you two. You know the rules. No.... Canoodling in the Forbidden Forest." Hagrid explains as he rests one giant hand on each of the boys, ready to lead them back to their dorms.

"Canoodling?" Albus whispers with a chuckle into his friends ear. "The old man clearly needs to get a new dictionary for his next birthday."

Scorpius shrugs, "I'm just glad we didn't completely fuck everything up. It all seems the same, here in the present."

They reach the edge of the grounds before Hagrid stops, lifting his hands off their shoulders. "All right, boys, I think you can make it to your appropriate dorms from here."

"sorry Hagrid." Scorpius mutters before Albus chimes in with, "It won't happen again."

All they get in response in a curt nod from Hagrid before they set off toward their shared room. They've only taken a few steps when Hagrid barks out, "You can't fool me that easily, Potter. Your dorm is in the other direction. Please rerouted yourself."

The two friends turn and Albus furrows his brow in confusion. Scorpius looks down and let's out a little breath of shock. "Albus, I think we've found what's changed."

Albus, based on his friends instruction, looks down to investigate.

His school tie is now a shocking red. 

"I don't understand." Albus babbles in disbelief. "How am I in Gryffindor?"

"Something we did must have changed this reality." Scorpius tries desperately to rationalize, setting a supportive hand on his friends shoulder. "Caused to you be sorted into a different house."

"Boys." Hagrid clears his throat. "I understand that it's difficult to get alone time together when you're in separate houses but... You really need to get some shut eye before the big game tomorrow."

"Big game?"' Albus' mouth quickly goes dry.

Hagrid chuckles, "You're kidding right? The game between your two houses."

"We play.... Quidditch?" Scorpius stammers, his palms growing sweaty.

"Did you two bump your heads on tree branches while you were in the Forbidden Forest?" Hagrid furrows his brow suspiciously. 

"We're just messing around." Albus explains, slinging an arm across Scorpius' shoulder casually. "We like to pretend we're not on opposing teams.”

“I guess whatever keeps you two happy. I won’t question it.” Hagrid places his hands on his hips and raises an eyebrow, “Now, enough distracting me. It’s time to head off to bed before the sun rises. I won’t be responsible for making you miss your morning classes. I’ll leave you two alone to say goodbye. I best not find out that you’ve snuck out again.”

Albus and Scorpius watch as the groundskeeper walks toward his hut on the border of the Forbidden Forest, each of their heads full of worries about what mysteries tomorrow might bring.

“Right.” Albus turns toward his best friend who has an extremely worried look on his face. “I suppose I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Good night.” Scorpius feels his heart hammering nervously against his chest. He’s never had to enter the Slytherin common room on his own and while he doesn’t envy Albus having to navigate the Gryffindor dorms for the first time, the journey will feel much lonelier than usual.

Albus turns quickly, knowing that if they stretch the greeting for too long Scorpius would somehow convince him to sneak into his old dorms. But when they went back they knew that things were going to change, this just had to be one of the sacrifices made. They could still be best friends, even without sharing a dorm room.

Scorpius watches Albus walk away and chews his lip in worry. He wishes he could call out to his best friend, give Albus a hug before they part ways for who knows how long. Would they still sit next to each other in every class? What would it be like to have meals without Albus by his side? 

Before he can torture himself any further, Scorpius heads toward his dorm, wondering just what the next day might bring.

-

“Really, Al?” 

A voice stirs Albus from his dreamless sleep. 

He looks up, wincing but is relieved to find his cousin, Rose, with an amused look on her face. “Did you really forget the password again?”

“Uh… Yes.” Albus scrambles to his feet and dusts off his pants, “Er, sorry.”

“It’s fine.” Rose chuckles, mussing his hair playfully. “You were probably off with Scorpius again, weren’t you?”

So they’re friends in this reality too, even though they’re in different houses. Thank Merlin, Albus thinks. He lets out a sigh, “Uh, yah. We were… in the Forbidden Forest. Hagrid found us.”

Rose’s eyes grow wide, “Seriously? That’s a little risky the night before a big match, don’t you think?”

His cousin begins to inspect him from head to toe, poking and prodding to see if he has an injuries. Albus pushes her away gently and holds up his hands, “I’m fine!”

Rose crosses her arms, unimpressed. “I’m not losing because you’re off with a member of the opposing team, you two need to find a way to keep it in your trousers. Anyway, we should head to breakfast.”

“Uh, keep what in our trousers?” Albus mutters, completely confused as to what his cousin is referring. “We didn’t even do any magic out there. We were just… chatting.”

“I didn’t mean keep your wands in your pants.” Rose bursts out laughing, linking her arms through her cousin’s and begins to lead them toward the Main Hall. “God, Al, everyone knows what you two do behind closed doors. It’s pretty obvious.”

Albus quickly thinks of the Timeturner in his backpocket. There’s no way that Rose can know about that, even if they are much more chummy in this reality. His brow begins to sweat in worry. “I, uh, don’t know what you’re talking about…”

Rose stops in her tracks and puts her hands on either of Albus’s shoulders. She quickly looks around as if to ensure no one will over hear what she is about to say, “I know you and Scorpius are more than best friends. I get that it’s complicated, what with how you’re in different houses and on opposing Quidditch teams… I know that you two sneak off to the Owlery to snog between classes. I’m not as thick as you make me out to be.”

Albus’ suddenly feels very faint, “Snog? Scorpius? What?”


	2. Chapter 2

Scorpius barely sleeps, worrying about how Albus is faring in the Gryffindor dorms. He finds his own dorm and side of the room the same but instead of Albus’s things, Scorpius now only has an empty bed to keep him company. After many hours of sleepless tossing and turning, the first sign of daylight shines through the window. He puts his pillowcase over his head but it’s no use, sleep won’t relieve him from this lonely nightmare. 

He rises quite early, hoping that Albus has done the same. He wanders the halls aimlessly, wishing at every turn he’ll run into his best friend. Instead, he has an unfortunate encounter with Peeves. The poltergeist knocks him in the head with a textbook, inspiring a splitting headache to put a cherry on top of his terrible morning.

Soon, he’s joined by other students wandering toward the Great Hall. Scorpius’ stomach rumbles and while he resents the idea of being subjected to what interactions eating at the Slytherin table alone might bring, he desperately needs to eat. He falls into the throng of the crowd, feeling as though he’s sticking out like a sore thumb but ultimately, just like their previous reality, everyone ignores him completely. Flying under the radar with Albus at his side was a blessing but going unnoticed in a crowd alone was just downright depressing. No one even attempted to greet him with a meagre, “Good morning.”

A rush of anxiety fills his chest as he reaches the threshold of the grand dining hall. It’s just as big as before but somehow much more intimidating as he enters it alone. He tries to avoid eye contact as he wanders toward the Slytherin section of the hall, trying to locate the best spot to consume his breakfast in peace 

Scorpius sucks in a quick breath when he sees Rose and Albus enter into the Great Hall, arm in arm. He's used to Rose completely ignoring them, despite the amounts of times he's asked her out on a date. There was something so... Off-limits about her.

Scorpius raises his hand, hoping to catch Albus' eye. Instead, Rose quickly steps into Albus' gaze, blocking Scorpius from seeing even the expression on his friends face. 

Is he as nervous as I am? Did he sleep at all? How did he possibly make it into the Griffyndor dorms without knowing the password? 

Scorpius' thoughts swim with concern as he watches Rose lead Albus toward the Griffyndor table, particularly the end where the Quidditch players congregate. Slightly ill at the image of his best friend sitting anywhere else besides next to him, Scorpius turns back towards his breakfast that he's barely touched, fearing just how much this reality has changed and will affect his only friendship. 

"Go talk to him." Rose hisses at her cousin, prodding Albus encouragingly with fork.

He already has sweaty palms, which he wipes on his robes which feel so scratchy and foreign. "I can't. You don't understand..."

"I completely understand." Rose leans back and crosses her arms. "Things have changed between you and Scorpius and... You're scared."

He's not used to his cousin being so tuned in to his life. He can't decide whether it's disturbing or endearing how easy she's able to him. Doesn't means he's going to give her the satisfaction of knowing she's right though, "You still don't get it."

Rose's eyes soften slightly as she places her hands supportively atop of  
Albus'. "If you two want to be together, who cares what anyone else thinks? Especially your dads."

Albus shivers. The last thing he wants his father to know is that his middle child is gay. That would have a Daily Prophet headline written all over it.

Except I'm not gay, Albus thinks, and neither is Scorpius. But for whatever reason, this reality wants him to make out with best friend. 

"Remember when Scorpius was obsessed with you?" Albus jokes absentmindedly. "He must have asked your eleven times!"

Rose furrows her brow, "What are you talking about?

That's what Albus gets for making an assumption that anything other than their consciousnesses have carried over to this present. 

"Are you okay Albus?" Rose asks gently. "Are you really so in denial about your feelings for your best friend that you'd make something up that's so... Delusional? I really wonder whether you should play in the match today."

Albus perks up immediately, "Maybe I shouldn't. I am feeling quite out of sorts."

"Look, I know you're overwhelmed by your position and I get it - your dad was a great seeker too but-"

"Wait." Albus feels suddenly sick. "I'm a seeker?"

"You're truly off your rocker today." Rose chuckles in amusement then lowers her voice, "You're a seeker and so is your boyfriend.”

Albus’s cheeks flush quickly at the word ‘boyfriend’, for whatever reason, the thought of Scorpius as anything other than just his best friend makes Albus incredibly flustered. They knew that they’d have to sacrifice their original present when they went back in time but Albus was beginning to wonder if they should go back again, to put things back to normal, when things weren't so bloody complicated.

Of course, at that very moment, Scorpius makes eye contact with him. His eyes have a pleading look to them that make Albus long to simply lean over to his best friend and whisper, “Are you okay?” But instead of sitting next to him, Scorpius is all the way across the room.

“Sorry I’m teasing so much.” Rose leans back slightly. “It’s just delightfully refreshing to see you so flustered since apathetic is your usual state.”

“I’m not apathetic.” Albus mumbles defensively, still studying Scorpius across the room. “I care… about certain things.”

“Things like… Scorpius.” Rose smirks at her cousin. “It’s tragically adorable how you look at him, all forlorn and lost like a little puppy.”

Albus refocuses his gaze on Rose, “I dare you to compare me to a little puppy again, see just how you hold up against my wrath.”

“Hilarious and ambitious.” Rose shakes her head in disbelief. “I’m much better at spell casting than you. I’d have you on the floor in a minute or less.”

Scorpius looks back down at his meal. He’s pushed around his breakfast when he feels a hand on his shoulder. Instantly, he prickles, wondering who might try to interrupt the slight peace he's found in watching Albus from across the room and avoiding eye contact with the other Slytherin students. Scorpius raises his gaze and sees the intruder.

Professor Neville.

“Are you all right Scorpius?” The teacher inquires, a look of concern on his face.

“I’m fine.” Scorpius stammers, unsure of his relationship with the professor in this reality. “Just, uh, not very hungry this morning.”

Neville smiles kindly down at Scorpius. “Well, you better eat if you want to have any hope of catching the Snitch this evening.” 

Scorpius swallows slowly, trying to keep the worry off his face at this new information. “Uh, right, thanks, Sir.”

Neville nods curtly and continues on his way, winding through the tables. Scorpius shovels a few last bites of his breakfast into his mouth, an anxious feeling building in his chest. He quickly abandons his seat, wondering how the hell he ever agreed to using the TimeTurner in the first place. It changed too much and too quickly. There’s just too much to adjust to in this reality.

He stalks out of the Great Hall, needing to find sanctuary before he falls into a complete panic attack. He finds his favourite quiet corner and sinks to the ground, clutching his head in his hands. He hears the bustle of the students as they pass but he drowns them out with his racing mind. He tries to control his breath but it gets away from him. Albus used to help him through moments like this in the silence of their dorm room when things got to be too much. Where was he now?

“Scor?”

Scorpius hears his best friend’s voice but knows his mind is playing tricks on him, Albus is still at breakfast with Rose. That’s how things are now. They’re in different houses. They’re different people. They might not even be friends in this reality.

“Deep breaths.”  
He tries to follow the voice’s instructions, his eyes pressed shut. But it’s too difficult- his chest heaves and a panicked sob sneaks out. He hopes nobody has walked by. Usually, Albus would make jokes to make him feel better, to put things in perspective but right now, Scorpius is on his own.

“Scorpius. Listen to me. You have to calm down. Breathe in through your nose.”

Scorpius presses his hands over his ears but realizes that it won’t do anything to block out the sound considering the voice is within his own head.

“Scor. Please. You’re scaring me.”

He just wants to go back, to go back to way things were before. Why did he ever agree to going back in time, to changing things, to sacrificing their imperfect but exactly how he liked it present?

Suddenly, Scorpius felt a pressure against his lips. 

The shock alone set his breath back to its normal pace. His eyes fly open and he sees Albus’s lips pressed against his. 

Albus pulls away and smiles, “There you are.”

Just like always, Albus finds Scorpius, no matter what.


	3. Chapter 3

"Shocked you out of it right?" Albus chuckles nervously, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.

Scorpius absentmindedly brushes his fingertips across his lips that his best friend was kissing only seconds before. "Uh, yah, it did."

"Sorry." Albus mutters, casting his gaze down to the stones that were beneath them. "I just... You were pretty far gone and I didn't think you knew I was here. I didn't know what else to do."

"No, it's okay." Scorpius murmurs, his lips still tingling and his mind swimming with questions. A warmth settles in his chest and he smiles, "thanks."

Albus lets out a sigh of relief and leans back against the wall. "This is all... A bit too much, huh?"

"Way too much." Scorpius nods in agreement. 

The two boys fall into a comfortable silence, just like old times. Both of their racing with the fact that they just shared their first kiss... With one another.

"So." Scorpius straightens up, still experiencing the aftershocks of his panic attack. "We're seekers, huh?"

Albus chuckles, "On opposite teams. This reality is... Different."

"You can say that again." Scorpius feels his heart beat begin to slow as he relaxes. 

It's then that Scorpius realizes that Albus won't make eye contact with him. He reaches over to his friend, placing a hand on his shoulder, "Are we okay? Are you mad at me for something? I'm sorry if I did something wrong - I just... This is all so confusing."

Albus slowly scoots further away so that Scorpius' hand falls away. He looks up to meet his friends imploring eyes. "I'm fine. We just have to take things slow - figure out how everything works here. Adjust. Even if it's difficult and overwhelming."

"Nothing's going to change between us." Scorpius promises his friend firmly. 

It already has, Albus thinks with a jolt. 

"As long as we're there for each other, everything will be the same, no matter what changes around us." Scorpius continues. "Well be each other's constant, just like always."

"We can't know that." Albus mutters, wondering what exactly Scorpius will do when he finds out the truth about their relationship in this reality. The last thing he wants is to lose his best friend but if Albus tells him the truth, Scorpius might be scared away. "How can we possibly know that? Just two days ago you were asking out Rose and now... Never Mind."

Scorpius searches Albus's face for some indication of what he won't share. All he sees is fear confusion, much like what he is experiencing himself. 

"I guess in some ways we can't know what will happen tomorrow." Scorpius responds, maybe a bit too hastily. "But I do know that you're my best friend and nothing can change that. Ever."

"Maybe kissing you wasn't the best idea then." Albus jokes before realizing what he's said.

"It did the trick." Scorpius can see is friend is uncomfortable so he plays it off. "Distracted me, I mean."

Albus lets out a long sigh, "what are we going to do, Scor?"

"We'll figure it out." Scorpius feels like he's lying not only to himself but also his best friend, but Albus needs this right now. "We go to classes. We play the game tonight. We figure out how we fit into this new world we've, well, created. But most importantly, we be there for one another."

"Merlin, we're going to look like idiots chasing after that golden snitch." Albus squints in disgust at the ridiculous visual of him and Scorpius traipsing around after a shining metal orb. 

"But we'll look like idiots... Together." Scorpius grins wickedly. 

Albus reflects the look,"Deal." 

-

Their class timetables are a bit bizarre to adjust to. They were used to following each other around, one or the other remembering what class they might have next. Now that they were on different schedules and the only person that drags Albus to class is Rose.

After their last class of the day ends, Albus' mind feels like ooze. It's hard to concentrate on anything when all he can think about is how he is worried about Scorpius' wellbeing, especially with the looming Quidditch match.

Albus wanders the hall aimlessly as Rose has rushed off to do some pre-game visualization. He just can't be bothered. He quickly finds himself in the familiar comfort of the lower levels of the castle that lead toward the Slytherin dorm rooms. He touches the wall, dragging his fingertips across the cool stones. He's quickly pulled from this moment of peace when someone shoves him in the back. Hard.

"What exactly are you playing at, Potter?" 

The voice makes Albus' hair stand up on end but he's not sure how he recognizes it. He turns slowly to see a Neanderthal of a student standing in front of him. Albus stutters, "Uh... I'm sorry?"

"Why are you here before the big game?" The stranger demands aggressively. "You spying on us? Trying to get some of our plays so that you can have the upper hand? Look, just because Scorpius somehow... Tolerates you doesn't mean you just get to wander wherever you want. Get out of here, Griffyndor before I call Peeves and sick him on you."

Albus knows not to stand up for himself in this situation unless he wants a black eye to accompany him onto the Quidditch field. He holds up his hands defensively, "I didn't mean to be down here. I must've taken a wrong turn."

The foreign student grabs a hold of Albus's dress shirt, raising a fist threateningly. Albus winces, anticipating the pain that was about to come his way.

 

"Goyle!" 

Scorpius. 

Of course it's Scorpius saving him, as he had many times before. But Goyle? Who the hell is Goyle?

Albus opens his eyes to see that Scorpius has one hand on this Goyle figure who immediately releases Albus at Scoprius' order.

"This, Albus, is Gabriel Goyle." Scorpius introduces and Goyle narrows his eyes in confusion. "He plays with me on the Slytherin Quidditch team."

Albus nods quickly, thrusting out one hand, "Nice to officially meet you about all the years of going to school together."

"Yah, I guess." Goyle reluctantly takes Albus' hand but he seems to have relaxed a little. They both drop their hands and Goyle furrows his brow. "Still doesn't explain why you're lurking around the Slytherin dorms hours before a match."

Scorpius has never been good at lying, it's just not a talent that's been in his arsenal so he usually leaves situations like these up to Albus diffuse. Scorpius gives his best friend a sympathetic look.

Albus is a little perplexed - just like his relationships with people changed , this new universe had brought along people who never even existed before. It hurt his head a little, especially considering this bully seemed to think he was friends with Scorpius but didn't seem to realize how close Albus and Scorpius.

At some point Scorpius has moved between Goyle and Albus, probably in an effort to keep Goyle from attacking Albus with his presumably iron fists. A flash of an idea crosses Albus' mind and while he knows his somewhere between idiotic and suicidal, he just hopes that the shock will keep Goyle from pummelling him.

Albus laces his fingers into Scorpius' and declares firmly, "Were together."

Just as predicted, Goyle's eyes widen dramatically, "you're boyfriends?"

But none out of the three is more surprised then Scorpius, who squawks, "we're What???"


End file.
